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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26925490">my mentor in americanos and strawberry scones</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/remmieismyname/pseuds/remmieismyname'>remmieismyname</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>OC-Tober 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>But it's not an AU, Coffeeshop AU, Gen, a lot of coffee, a lot of pastries, as well as listening to 'ambient coffeeshop sounds' on youtube for like three more hours, go nice on me this wasn't read through by anyone else for once, gotta commit to it, grant is an amazing teacher, i spent an hour in total researching how to make different types of coffee, i'm going to tag this like a tumblr post and i apologize in advance, it will be over time, now freshly edited, oc-tober 2020, proud of baby camila</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 02:02:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,633</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26925490</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/remmieismyname/pseuds/remmieismyname</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>*Day 9 of OC-Tober: Mentor*</p><p>she's worked here for four years now; you would think she'd have a simple americano down by now</p><p>the scone is pretty good though; wonder who taught her that</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Camila &amp; Grant, Original Character &amp; Original Character</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>OC-Tober 2020 [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1964641</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>my mentor in americanos and strawberry scones</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>- my daily prompts from this year are coming from @oc-growth-and-development on tumblr<br/>- check out their blog for other prompts and the many other works that are being reposted for this year's oc-tober!<br/>- thank you to dani for being an amazing beta reader; they're @thesnowidol4life on tumblr as well</p><p>- translations for those who do not understand coffee jargon<br/>+ portafilter = attaches to the grouphead; holds the actual espresso grounds<br/>+ grouphead = metal, permanent attachment that brings water out of the machine and into the filter<br/>+ tamper =  tool used to pack the espresso grounds into the filter; makes the grounds compressed<br/>+ puck = the compressed coffee grounds look like a hockey puck</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>october 1, 2020</em>
</p><p>The long winded whir of the coffee machine downstairs stirred Grant awake. His eyes cracked open to the still darkness of the odd quiet atmosphere surrounding him. He looked over to Summer noticing that she was still asleep. He looked over to the clock. He was confused at his wife’s slumber, knowing she’d be up knitting by now. The red animosity of 4:27 A.M made him groan inwardly, realizing exactly why that was. He brought his hands up to rub his eyes tiredly.</p><p>Grant sat up slowly, as to not disturb his peaceful wife. He slipped his feet into his worn slippers and rose up slowly, all the creaks and pops making his age known to the room. He grabbed his cardigan from the bedpost, slipping it on and making his way into the living room. He grabbed his phone from the kitchen island, the bright light suddenly blinding him.</p><p>He moved his face away from the light, bringing his hand to his eyes once again to rub at them. He sighed, whispering a curse to whoever made him wake up this early. He moved to sit in one of the barstools, making sure he was comfortable before dealing with the new day’s nonsense.</p><p>Blinking his eyes open to readjust, he turned the screen back on. A slew of messages popped into focus. Several from his insufferable granddaughter, one about a pesky neighbor from his own daughter, and multiple from the cafe’s order website. No cheerful greetings and “hi, how are you”s; not even from his own family. He exhaled exasperatedly. He decided to ignore the messages, and scroll quickly to his game.</p><p>The soft padding of footsteps outside the door disrupted his peaceful round of Sudoku. However, as quick as the footsteps on the landing appeared, they vanished. He frowned towards the door, but made his way off the bar stool, closing his abandoned game.</p><p>The door creaked open, the lock on it blocking most of his vision. Through the crack he could see two medium sized cups and a plate of steaming pastries on the accent table outside the door. He peered to the right and saw a flash of a ponytail waiting at the bottom steps. He unlatched the lock and opened the door, glimpsing at his employee. Upon seeing him step out onto the front step, she pulled herself from the doorjamb, making her way towards the back of the kitchen.</p><p>He moved back over to the table to investigate the goodies. A note was attached to the to-go cups and the plate was stacked with several scones. Strawberry. Grant read the note carefully.</p><p>
  <em>“morning grant! sorry to wake you up if i did. It’s the loyals delivery day, so i thought i’d come in early to start up packaging and stuff. monty and peyton will be here around 5 to start sending them out. i brought up your americano and summer’s ginger tea. p.s the scones are fresh :)”</em>
</p><p>He smiled at the note before putting it on the plate. Grabbing the cup holder and plate of scones, he pushed his way back into the compact living space. He placed the plate down near the fridge, along with the tea. He pocketed the note, grabbed the coffee and a scone, and made his way back out of the door. He closed the door behind him, taking a sip of the hot drink in his hand. He made a little grimace at the taste and chuckled. He started his way down the steps.</p><p>When he reached the bottom step, he glanced at the scene in front of him. The kitchen was a bustle. Boxes were lined up along the front counter, their contents clearly placed in a specifically organized way. Little bags of candy, mason jars of an amber liquid, and sheets of tissue paper were piled next to even more cardboard boxes. The espresso machine sat dormant, but looked freshly wiped down and tidy. The beans and fridges looked restocked. The chairs were still stacked high on the tables, but there was no change there over the past few months. The space was calm, even with the natural flurry in the middle of it.</p><p>Camila took a sip from the metal straw, the ice clinking against glass and metal. She set the drink down, grabbing another box. She crumpled a cluster of tissue together and placed it at the bottom. She wrapped a jar of apple cider in a couple spins of tissue, setting it gently in the corner of the box at a diagonal. She placed two bags of assorted candy against the glass, then made her way over to the pastry counter. She picked out three packaged pastries at random and set them haphazardly in front of the candy. She stuck the special note card in the other corner of the box before grabbing the industrial tape. She sealed the box twice, swiftly pinning the address and cafe logo onto the box, running the tape over that as well. She let out a sigh as she gingerly shoved the box to the side. </p><p>Grant took tiny sips from his coffee as he watched her repeat the process a handful of times before setting the cup down. He took a bite of his scone finally deciding to announce his presence.</p><p>“For someone who’s worked here for four years, you still can’t make an Americano.”</p><p>Camila jumped, dropping the newly picked up mason jar onto the counter with a loud thunk. She turned around, suddenly startled. Her shock turned into a quick scowl before grabbing her coffee glass again, forgetting about her packaging task.</p><p>“How long have you been standing there?!” She hissed, the scowl easing back into a smaller frown.</p><p>“Long enough. How many boxes you got there?” Grant walked over to the full counter, starting to count before she could respond. He didn’t pay attention to the number in his head.</p><p>“About fourteen. I was just finishing up Ms. Crabtree’s box before you so rudely interrupted.” She aimed the glare at her boss, setting her cup down on the cold marble. Grant peeked over at the extra item in the box. A small bundle of pet treats that he knew she probably made when she first got here this morning.</p><p>“Ah. The old woman asking for pet treats for her Snookums again?” He let out a light chuckle.</p><p>Camila only nodded. She moved toward the pastries again, this time grabbing two snickerdoodles and one chocolate croissant for the picky old lady. She laid them neatly in the box, pulling back to grab the tape again.</p><p>Grant looked on to his former mentee with an appreciative smile. She had come a long way from tripping over air and focusing on only one task at a time. Now she was packaging specific likes for customers who had been coming here for longer than she was alive. He remembered a small eighteen year old, still unsure of who she was but knowing where she wanted to go. Now a grown woman with her head placed firmly on her shoulders stood in front of him, still trying to hide the easy smile behind a fake frown. Still the ever dramatic child she was at heart.</p><p>“Once you’re done there I want to go over how to make an Americano again, since you still don’t have the proportions right. Preferably before Dumb and Dumber get here.” Grant pulled his cardigan around him, hearing the tape pass over the box. Camila just kept closing the box.</p><p>“Please. You can come back to being a gold star employee later. I need to make fun of you a little bit while I still can. Lillian will clobber me if she knows how much I’ve made fun of you.” He said hurriedly. It was a known truth. His granddaughter would kick his ass for the years of teasing he made the ‘love of her life’ endure. The tape made one final whoosh over the box.</p><p>Camila made a show of rolling her eyes, setting the tape down to the side. She made her way over to the espresso machine and crossed her arms. When Grant didn’t move, she waved her arm out towards the machine, annoyed but now letting a smile show.</p><p>Grant moved towards the espresso machine, making quick work of removing the portafilter* and flushing the grouphead*. He wiped the filter down before stepping slightly over to the coffee grinder. Making sure to go at a teasingly slow pace, he filled the bowl, leveled it, and grabbed the tamper*. He tamped the grounds to make a puck*, looking over to see Camila still watching attentively, and promptly wiping the excess off the sides.</p><p>Camila made a grab for the filter, but Grant pulled his arm away out of her reach. He locked it back into the grouphead and hit start. The machine came to life quickly, the deep whir louder than it was earlier.</p><p>“Grant. I know how to make an espresso shot,” Camila huffed out.</p><p>“I know you do. Just like you know how to make everything else in here. I’m just showing you the whole process, like old times,” right then the machine stopped and the smell of fresh caffeine hit his nostrils. He grabbed the small cup and made his way over to the serving station. Luckily, Camila was right behind him with the boiling water.</p><p>He noticed the small smirk she held had disappeared into a bittersweet smile.</p><p>“It hasn’t been that long. Besides it’s not like I’m going anywhere,” she turned towards him, sure of her words. He only nodded, causing her to turn away. “I’ll still be here tomorrow to make fun of too,” she partially muttered. He slapped her arm lightly, letting out a croaky laugh.</p><p>“I know Mila. I know.”</p><p>A peaceful silence fell over them as Grant poured the hot espresso over the perfectly proportioned water. He put the cup on a saucer and pushed it over towards Camila. She carefully grabbed the edge of the cup, bringing it to her lips. She blew on it and took a small sip, then gently placed the cup back down. She let out a small sound of approval, nodding her head vigorously. She stared at the cup’s contents.</p><p>“Yeah no, that tastes exactly like when I make it.” Grant gave her a look. “Okay maybe a tad bit less bitter, but overall it’s the same thing.” She gave him a look right back.</p><p>Incidentally, a soft knock at the front brought both of their attentions to the windowed door. Monty and Peyton stood out front, hugging themselves from the chilly wind out front. Monty simply waved through the door, his eyes hinting at his normally goofy grin on his face behind the mask. Peyton sported her signature uncaring look, the mask hiding her scowl, even more uncaring due to the cold temperatures. Grant nodded in the door’s direction, Camila immediately pacing to the door, pulling her mask over her face, to open it for their helpful volunteers.</p><p>Grant pulled his mask from his cardigan’s pocket, pulling it on as the door swung open. He grabbed two cups and two bags of black tea that were to the left of him. He shifted back over to the serving station with the hot water in hand. He prepped the tea bags and poured the water over them, the color seeping immediately into the clear water. He secured the lids on top and pushed them towards the boxes.</p><p>Camila had already started going down the list of customers and their respective addresses on their walk over to the counter. The mask made her slow down her average lecturing speed.</p><p>“- there’s Mr. Richfair on Newberry. If you see his newspaper on the driveway, can you put it on top of the box. I don’t want him hurting his back more. Then make sure to ring the Leminwells doorbell. They’ll be up at this time-”</p><p>Grant sat down in the stool under the station counter. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket, clicking on the first notification he saw. Of course it was his granddaughter’s. The ghost of an amused smile passed on his face.</p><p>
  <em>“camila is coming in an hour early, sorry in advance :)”</em><br/>
<em>“i tried to tell her that she didn’t have to, but she kept going on about time management and keeping the loyals happy, especially that old Crabtree”</em>
</p><p>An hour went by between the last and next message.</p><p>
  <em>“she’s starting to sound more and more like you, might as well just hand down the crown now”</em><br/>
<em>“i was kidding in the last message”</em>
</p><p>A brief pause before another one was sent in.</p><p>
  <em>“kinda ;)”</em><br/>
<em>“love u, tell grandma morning for me &lt;3”</em>
</p><p>Grant sent off a quick message, now looking back up to his prized worker. She was still rattling off instructions. He made eye contact with the two teens, signaling them to the counter, where their drinks had cooled considerably. Camila noticed the silent exchange and sighed begrudgingly.</p><p>“Fine. Each of you have seven deliveries today, but who wants to take the extra special one?” Camila crossed her arms at the two of them. Grant could tell she was smirking.</p><p>“Is the delivery to our precious Liliian,” Grant questioned, already knowing the answer.</p><p>“Yup!” Camila’s eyes crinkled more in a hidden beam of a smile while the two groaned loudly.</p><p>“We don’t get paid enough for this,” Monty wheezed out from behind his mask.</p><p>“Aye! You get paid in experience, free treats, and any tips you get while delivering,” Camila scolded. She glanced at their blank stares before promptly deflating, “And I’ll give you gas money for a week.”</p><p>Monty quickly raised his hand, beating Peyton to it. Grant made his way back to the fridge grabbing the pre-bagged treats and the small bottle of pink lemonade from the back of it for Lillian’s impromptu order. He pushed them toward the smaller teen without a word.</p><p>“Be safe. Keep your ringer on and if there’s anyone that bothers you, you better call me.”</p><p>“Yes sir!” Monty chanted out, quickly snorting at Camila’s dejected look. Peyton only gave a small, uninterested nod her way.</p><p>Peyton started walking to the door, followed by a still giddy Monty.</p><p>“See you later Mr. Park!” They threw a wave over their shoulders, letting the door shut behind them softly. Camila exhaled loudly, making her way back behind the counter.</p><p>“Teenagers.” She pulled one of the mask’s ear loops off, letting the mask hang, and making her exhaustion clear to him again. Grant lightly pushed Camila with his shoulder.</p><p>“You were like that- no excuse me, you still are that. Especially around my granddaughter!”</p><p>“Leave Lillian out of this!” Camila turned red, still beaming anyway.</p><p>Grant huffed a laugh, standing up from his stool. He put his hands to his back, another litany of cracks and pops sounding out loud. Camila grimaced and huffed at the sound.</p><p>“Go on and take your break. She probably wants to scold you still from coming in early. I’ll start the opening shift and you just come on back after you’ve eaten something.” Camila silently nodded at him in a questioning motion. “Yes, I’m sure. I gotta practice making the specialty drinks again anyway.” Camila let out a boisterous laugh at his remark. Grant laughed, annoyed. “Now get on outta here!”</p><p>“Ah so the apprentice becomes the master-” Grant kicked his leg out smoothly, aiming for Camila’s right one. Camila jumped away from it and sat down in the stool he had risen from. A grin reappeared on her face.</p><p>“Yes it appears so.” He smiled right back at her as the whir of the machine came back to life.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>- this is my third ever public "oneshot" of my oc universe and for once it's not sad (and it's canon), i'm improving<br/>- please leave any constructive criticism below; i'd love to read it<br/>- follow me on my main tumblr @remmieismyname and then my TDU specific @lemonraspberrydrinks<br/>love y'all! &lt;3</p><p>P.S this does take place in quarantine, camila and grant don't wear masks around each other because camila only sees the inside of the shop and then lillian's aunt's house, where she lives (and no one else leaves), and grant never leaves the shop; they do wear masks around others and when the shop is open</p><p>wear your masks and stay healthy!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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